Although it claims the move “isn’t about subsidies”, O2 is effectively moving away from the traditional model where carriers subsidize the phones they sell up-front, then bury the real cost in a combined monthly tariff. Read more »
Verizon CEO Lowell McAdam is watching T-Mobile’s new contract-free, subsidy-free mobile strategy closely. If consumers start biting, McAdam says Verizon is willing to shake up its own pricing and contract policies. Read more »
Hype over T-Mobile’s “Uncarrier” event on Tuesday is building. There are no guarantees about what exactly T-Mo will announce tomorrow, but here’s what we expect — and hope — will come out of the NYC press extravaganza. Read more »
The practice of locking phones is a symptom of a greater disease in the U.S.: device subsidies. If we can separate the hardware from the service, consumers will ultimately have greater choice and save money. Read more »
T-Mobile CEO John Legere says a magenta-branded iPhone will be on the carrier’s shelves in three to four months. Given T-Mo’s accelerated network rollout that will put the phones launch right in sync with its LTE launch. Read more »
Ofcom wants to make it possible for consumers to pull out of their mobile contracts without paying a penalty, if the carrier raises the agreed contract price. But, as operators have warned, this may mean drastically reducing upfront hardware subsidies. Read more »
T-Mobile will lean heavily on financing to execute its plan to end phone subsidies, but it’s not the only one. MetroPCS and Cricket are already largely subsidy free, but they’re using financing to get expensive high-end devices like the iPhone into their customers’ hands. Read more »
U.S. carriers have a love-hate relationship with the iPhone and an analyst downgrade for AT&T and Verizon after the iPhone 5 went on sale illustrates why. Carriers may get customers, but they also have to shell out hundreds on a subsidy that cuts into their margins. Read more »
Free Mobile has launched a new front in its war with France’s incumbent operators. It’s taking SFR to court over the handset subsidies it charges, claiming they amount to usurious loans that consumers wind up paying back in the form of hidden fees in their contracts, Read more »
Apart of what it would do for Microsoft’s Xbox games business, the purported new hardware-and-services bundle, if successful, could hold significant implications for its broader digital living room ambitions as well. If Microsoft proves it can attach long-term service commitments to Xbox hardware, it’s no big ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »
As the 2012 election unfolds and debates about clean energy foment, looking back at the history of energy subsides tells us how the bulk of subsidies have gone to fossil fuels. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
The solar industry has begun 2012 with some trepidation, with many on the warpath to cut costs and reduce output. These moves give the market a chance to reduce inventories and get production more in sync with demand. But recovery will likely come slowly. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
The California Energy Commission on Wednesday filed a complaint against a wind turbine maker, contending that the company has exaggerated the performance of its equipment and caused the commission to overpay in rebates. Read more »
Not What It Sounds Like: Porsche has gone solar. No, not by slapping solar panels on cars, but by installing its first U.S. solar array at a California logistics facility. — Fast Company Building a Better Subsidy: For the first time, clean energy developers can choose […] Read more »
Federal agencies including the Department of Energy, Department of Transportation, and the Environmental Protection Agency could have saved nearly $26 billion over the last eight years had they implemented more than 13,000 recommendations from the Inspectors General. That’s the finding in a new report released yesterday […] Read more »
